Setting Goals for 2012

Athletic 

As many of you know, athleticism is a close second to art for me. For 2012 my goal is to compete in an Olympic distance triathlon with an ocean swim. So today, I registered for St. Anthony's Triathlon in St. Petersburg, FL. The 1-mile swim will take place in the Tampa Bay, where the waves are calm and the water temperature should be bearable! 

Last year I competed in my first Olympic distance triathlon at Moss Park in Orlando. The Olympic is a 1-mile swim, a 23-mile bike, and a 6.2-mile run. If you missed my "Aim High" post about setting attainable goals and my first Olympic distance in 2011, it's worth a read.

I figured if I could make it through the BLACK water of Moss Park Lake, I could handle the ocean, where the salt water will make me more buoyant! Honestly, I'm just scared of SHARKS. But 2012 is about overcoming fear, aiming high, and growing. You have to push beyond your comfort zone in order to grow. So here I go...

Artistic Style

After watching BRAVO's "Work of Art" Show this season and seeing the wonderful drawing and line work of winning artist Kymia Nawabi, I began to miss drawing and mark making. My goal is to expand my style to include more drawing and mark making intermingled with collage in the new work that I will create this year. I am sure there is a way that I can incorporate both disciplines into one harmonious composition.... and I'm committing to push myself outside my comfort zone, experiment and grow.

Affectionate Goats / 24x24 / collage on birch panel

Exhibitions

I have already been working toward my BIG goal of the 50-piece solo exhibition at the Thrasher Horne Center for the Arts in 2012. I have been showing my progress both here on the blog and on my Facebook fan page. 

The Facebook page is worth a look as it shows many quick entries of sketches, and progress shots of work for this monumental show. My largest solo exhibition to date included only 43 pieces of new work, this show goes above and beyond that!

In addition to my Noah's Ark Show, I also have a smaller scale 20-piece exhibition at the Stone Soup Gallery in Key West, FL March 15-April 17. For a year now I have been working toward sending the best possible selection of work to both shows and start the new year out strong.

My goal for these two solo exhibitions is excellent attendance, and of course, sales. I will be honing my marketing as we get closer to the dates of these shows. Stay tuned, bring a friend. Have some wine, open your wallet! There's nothing like a one-of-a-kind original artwork.

Workshops

2012 is already booked with workshops for me, if you can believe it. I'll be teaching in Bermuda, Texas, New Mexico, North Carolina, Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, and back home in Florida this year. My hope is to introduce more NEW painting techniques to the paper portion of the class. I'm constantly doing research and experimenting on my own with painting collage papers, I plan to bring as much new information as I can to students in 2012.

THANK YOU for sharing my goals with me, for following this blog. I appreciate your support, your comments and your interest in my work. Here's to a fantastic 2012 with much personal and professional growth!